Jump Then Fall
by cinderstellabella
Summary: My version of what happens after the movie with Moose and Camille, set to one of Taylor Swift's masterpieces of music.
1. The Way You Sound in The Morning

**So I knew I wanted to write a songfic. I love writing them, and I love reading them...but I have a really weird taste in music. Seriously, I listen to everything and anything. My music library is anything from Pop to Alternative to, like, Broadway, so I looked forever to try and find a song everyone would be familiar with. I hate reading songfics where I don't know the song. It drives me crazy. But anyway, in my search for the perfect song, I came across the 900 Taylor Swift songs I have, and I was like 'Woah. All of her songs relate to Moose and Camille in some way or another.' So here it is, a Moosille story to one of my favorite Taylor Swift songs, Jump Then Fall. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Step Up franchise, or the song. If I did i'd be a musical genius, which I most definitely am not. Although I wish I was...**

**Anyway, enjoy!**

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_I like the way you sound in the morning,  
We're on the phone and without a warning,  
I realize your laugh is the best sound,  
I have ever heard_

Camille rolled over groggily as she heard her phone blaring the annoying ringtone she'd been meaning to change. She looked at the clock and huffed loudly, cursing the person who thinks it's okay to wake her up before seven in the morning. Glancing at the caller i.d., she got her answer, ignored the call, and threw her pillow over her head. Two seconds later, the phone rang again. Getting irritated, she angrily pressed 'talk'.

"Seriously? The sun isn't up yet. Why are you?" She heard a laugh come from the other end of the phone. Rolling her eyes, she went on, "I'm not kidding. You know I'm much easier to deal with between the hours of ten and ten. This better be important." Camille tapped her finger on the back of the phone, waiting for an answer.

"Well, aren't you just Little Miss Sunshine this morning! This is our first "official" day as a couple. You don't honestly think I'm going to let you waste it in bed, do you? I have a full day planned. No interruptions, I promise." She ignored how adorably cute his voice sounds in the morning, and contemplated a moment before giving in. "Well then. How can I say no to that? What do you have in mind, Robbie?" She giggled at the affectionate nickname she gave him when they were little. Camille was the only one who could get away with calling him that, and everyone knew it. Not even Mrs. Alexander could call him anything but 'Moose' without getting the silent treatment for at least three days.

Moose shook his head back and forth, she knew, even though she couldn't see him. "Nope. I'm not telling you anything. You're just going to have to wait." She agreed to be ready in twenty minutes, and she was fully aware he wasn't kidding about legitimately dragging her out of bed. He had done it before, and he'll do it again.

How does he have this hold over her, you ask? Well, it's simple. He's Moose. She always gives in to him. She never stays mad very long, and she could never not forgive him. Sometimes he's just a big idiot, but he doesn't mean it. He would never hurt her on purpose, she knew that. He was never one for words, and never one to let someone down, so obviously when the pirates needed his help, all he could think about was being there for them. He didn't even think of how it would affect Camille, he just thought she'd understand and be there like she always was. She blamed herself for that. She let him get away with far too much. Maybe it was partly because she loved him, or his geeky voice that was never very manly, but yet she still adored. Or maybe it was his laugh. Yeah, its definitely that last one. He has this melodious laugh that she swears makes her heart stop beating.

Seriously, Camille has always loved noises. It's a little odd, but she finds them soothing. She loves the sound of music. Pianos, violins, guitars, any instrument. She loves the sound of the subway. She loves the sound of the city. But more importantly, she loves the sound of his laugh. It's unlike anything she's ever heard. He has different laughs, she's come to realize. A fake one that he uses when someone tells him a joke that isn't funny. A loud, obnoxious one when someone tells him a joke that's really funny. A kind of girl-like giggle when he's nervous. And then, there's her favorite laugh: His genuine one. It tops all of his other laughs. He reserved this one especially for her.

_I like the way I can't keep my focus,  
I watch you talk, you didn't notice,  
I hear the words, but all I can think is,  
We should be together_

They were walking down a street in New York City, sipping on the lattes they picked up from Starbucks. Moose was going on about the Pirates and the new moves he was learning from Jason, and Camille found herself staring at him instead of listening to what he was saying. Sure, she heard the words, but its so hard not to stare at him when he speaks. It was like watching television. His face lit up like a little kid opening presents on Christmas, and he flailed his arms and hands around. It was quite funny, actually, but also adorable.

She began to notice the quirks when he speaks a long time ago, and it was just a contributing factor as to why she loved him. They would talk for hours on end, sometimes about nothing, sometimes about important things, but as soon as he went into a tangent, she would tune him out and just stare. She's been caught before, especially when Moose suddenly asked her a question and she'd have no answer but 'uh...uhm...what?', and she'd blush and ask him to repeat the question. She never told him how she would keep saying 'we should be together' over and over in her head, and he never told her how cute he thought it was when she'd get all flustered and blush.

See, what Camille didn't know is that Moose had been thinking the same as her the entire time. He always had this little voice at the back of his head, nagging him to ask her out before he lost his chance. And believe me, he had lost chances many times. Three to be exact. She'd had 3 boyfriends prior to their relationship, and every time he'd say 'I'm going to tell her how I feel...soon,' and he'd never man up. But low and behold, they'd break up, he's be there to put the pieces back together. As much as he hated seeing her broken, he couldn't help feeling that glimmer of hope that he still had a chance, but for how long? The day he finally decided to tell her, he met Sophie. Well, he actually didn't 'meet' her. He knew of her, she knew of him, but they finally started talking at the party. As bad as it sounds, when they started talking, all thoughts of Camille went to the back of his head. He and Sophie started dating, and Camille became second best. That's not how he wanted it to be per say, but Sophie demanded it. She was jealous of any girl Moose even glanced at, and she told him if they were to be in a relationship, Camille had to go. He knew it was bad. He knew Camille should come first. But he was smitten by Soph. Not in love, not even 'in like', he just liked the thought of having a girlfriend, especially one like Sophie. But eventually, things started falling apart. She and him drifted, and he was ninety percent sure that she was cheating on him, and as bad as it sounds, he really didn't care. He told her it wasn't working, she mutually agreed, and that was that. He begged for Camille's forgiveness for weeks before she finally gave in, and that's when he knew that she and he should be together.

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**Feedback, pretty please? Not really sure how I feel about it. I was going to have it be a oneshot, but it would've been way too long so it's going to have multiple chapters.**


	2. I'll Shine For You

**Thanks to Kate-Emma, x-Whizzified-Magic-x, dance-of-the-butterflies, and littlestpanda92 for the great reviews! I really appreciate your support. It means a lot to me :)**

**Anyways, I'm like obsessing over this couple lately. They're just so adorable. I decided to just do the chapters verse by verse now, since they seem to be getting a little longer. Not really sure if this chap is too wordy, but I hope I got the characters' feelings right. Enjoy chapter 2!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Blah, blah, blah.**

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_Everytime you smile, I smile,  
And everytime you shine, I'll shine for you_

They were holding hands when Moose stopped walking suddenly, causing Camille to be pulled back. She raised her eyebrows at the serious look that replaced the usual goofy grin on his face.

"Uh, Moose? You still with me?" She tightened her fingers around his, causing her to get his attention. His gaze softened as a smile tugged at her lips.

"Yeah, I'm here Chameleon. Just thought of something." Camille waited for more words to come after that, and when they didn't she gave him a look that said 'go on.'

"It's just...your smile. It's like...amazing. It makes me smile." He squinted at the sun and adverted his gaze to a nearby tree. "I know it sounds really cheesy and stupid. But I thought you should know."

Camille giggled and moved so she was in his line of vision. "That isn't stupid Moose. It's nice. Who knew Robert Alexander III could be so sweet?" She nudged him a bit, causing him to smirk.

"Psh, Cam, I'm totally a sensitive guy. Just not all the time. That would ruin my 'image'." She scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"What image, Moose? You mean the scrawny, curly-headed geek image? Yeah, I'm sure that's in jeopardy." Moose snapped his head to face her and Camille's eyes widened. She tentatively took a step back before taking off in a full sprint.

"You better run Camille! I am not a geek!" He chased her throughout the streets of New York before they both collapsed in the middle of a park of exhaustion, coincidentally the same park where he had first been dragged back into dancing almost three months ago. They were both laughing hysterically and out of breath.

Once they calmed down, they both locked eyes. Just as they were leaning in, he suddenly turned on her. He tickled her stomach, knowing she was especially ticklish there.

"Take it back!" She tried to squirm her way away but Moose's grip was too strong. She hated that he knew she was ticklish; he used it to his advantage when they got in little fights like this, which happened all the time. Between giggles she tried to get out, "Moose! I can't breathe! Stop!" but he kept tickling mercilessly. She finally managed to push him off of her, only to be pulled back down on to his lap.

She tensed at first, and then relaxed. He stopped trying to tickle her and just stared at her. She had a huge smile plastered on, and the more he stared at her, the more it faded. Camille and Moose both leaned in and shared the second kiss of their relationship. They both pulled back, breathless.

"Wow," Camille managed to get out. Moose responded by wrapping his arms around her waist and resting his chin on her shoulder, pulling her down to settle in between his legs.

She stared up at him, mesmerized. At that moment, Camille realized how much he shined. She thought it was just the sun for a second. But everything about him just...sparkled. His personality, his eyes, his smile, his hair. Absolutely everything.

"You're perfect," she blurted, immediately wishing she didn't just say that. She blushed and stared straight ahead, feeling the slight rumble in his chest from laughter.

"I'm not perfect. But you're adorable." She rolled her eyes at him, just like she had done a million times before.

"No, I'm totally serious Moose. You like...shine, or something. You're perfect to me. Like, as in perfect for me. There's not one thing about you I wouldn't change. Well, maybe you could not be late for everything all the time...but you seem to have fixed that problem." He knew she was referring to the Halloween fiasco, and she knew he was incredibly sorry for that. She could tell the last statement made him uncomfortable, so she went on.

"Moose, you're forgiven. I understand why you had to do what you did. Honestly, I'm pretty sure I would've been mad even if you did tell me. I always felt like you replaced me with dance. And I was envious of that because I introduced you to it, and you were so much better at it than me from the get go. I guess I let the green-eyed monster called jealousy get in the way, especially when you started the MSA crew without me. I get it now. I was way too wrapped up in training to be a professional ballerina, and you knew that. You knew if you asked me I'd say yes right away without even thinking how it would affect my training. You wanted what was best for me, and you knew it was best to keep me away from it. But it still stung. For the record, though, I don't blame you for anything. I never did."

"Hey," he forced her chin up to look at him. "You come before everything for me, Camille. I'd give up dance in a heartbeat if it meant keeping you in my life. I wanted you in the MSA crew so bad. Everyone did. Andie and Chase fought me on the matter all the time, especially for the final battle, but I wouldn't budge. As much as we needed you, you needed to focus on your classes. I knew how much getting into a company meant to you back then, and I wasn't about to screw it up by trying to pull you back into street dancing. You're a million times better a dancer than me. You're pretty perfect for me, too. I know how stupid I was for not realizing it sooner. But we're here now." She snuggled up against him and watched the people at the playground across the park.

"Oh, and one more thing," he leaned down to whisper in her ear, _"You're the reason I shine."_

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**Aw I love the sweet side of Moose :) I wish my boyfriend could be more like him...Yeah so this chapter really wasn't as long as I thought it would be, so I'll try and get the third chapter up like ASAP. I wanted to give my take on why I thought Camille wasn't featured in Step Up 2 (although, I think she should've been), and that's what I came up with. Hopefully it makes sense. ..Anyway, so like? Dislike? Opinions are appreciated! Review!**


	3. Don't Be Afraid

**So, I was watching House tonight while writing this. I'm not like a House fanatic, but my dad is a pretty big fan so I started watching it. And as I was wrapping this up, I saw the preview and Alyson Stoner (Camille) is going to be on the next episode! I was like hm, that's ironic. But anyway, I've had a writer's block since the last chapter, so hopefully this sounds okay. Here's part 3 of Jump Then Fall!**

**Disclaimer: I still don't own anything**.

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_Whoa, I'm feeling you baby,  
Don't be afraid to,  
Jump then fall,  
Jump then fall, into me_

They had been fighting it for days, both not willing to admit their true feelings to each other. Their relationship had been official for almost two weeks now, and Camille was getting a little sick and tired of Moose not saying what he truly feels for her.

When introducing him to some of his friends he made at NYU (which it's a miracle he even has any, since he barely spends any time on campus), he still says 'his best friend'.

Really? Surely, they had moved past the 'just friends' title. Honestly, labeling their relationship wasn't really important to her, they knew what they were and that's all that mattered.

Regardless, lately Camille had been feeling that he was ashamed to say she was his girlfriend. It's not that she wanted to be his 'arm candy', or for him to show her off. She just wanted him to be proud to say she was his girlfriend.

She had been beating around the bush for days, saying her bad mood was just because she missed home or didn't feel well, but she knew that would only work for so long. Eventually, he would catch on. He always did.

It was pouring rain, and three in the morning, but Camille marched right up to his dorm room door. She was fully prepared to knock, but hesitated and stepped back. She wanted to do this; no, she needed to do this...but maybe it could wait a few more days.

Was this really that important to possibly start an argument over? Yes...and no. Maybe he just isn't ready for this. He wants to take it slow, not wanting to ruin the relationship before it's even a relationship. She decided against it, slowly turning away from the door. Before she could take a step, she heard the door open and felt a warm hand on her shoulder.

"Cam? It's three in the morning. What are you doing here?" She whipped around, startled by the skin contact. Moose ran a hand through his wild curls, squinting while his eyes adjusted to the light.

Camille bit her lip and focused on the carpet. Crap, she knew better than to do that. Clearly he'll see something is wrong. But instead of questioning like she was sure he would, he just stood there patiently, waiting for her response.

Slowly, she forced her eyes up from the ground to look into his. 'Its now or never Camille.'

"Did your roommate go home for the weekend?" His eyebrows furrowed in confusion and he nodded.

She took a deep breath and continued. "Alright. Then we need to talk."

She grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him into his room, letting go as he took a seat on the bed and she stood in front of him. She looked to her left, only to see the picture of them from the first day at NYU sitting on the night stand. That only fueled the already raging fire of emotions. She squared her shoulders and crossed her arms, and Moose knew she was pissed.

"Baby, what did I do?" She dropped her arms as a stormy look came over her face, and he winced. This was not going to be pretty.

"What did you do? WHAT DID YOU DO? HOW DO YOU NOT KNOW!" Moose could tell she was fuming, and as much as he wanted to say 'of course I can read your mind,' he knew that wouldn't be the best response. He chose his words carefully and approached the her in a cautious manner.

"C, I know every one thinks we have that whole 'best friend telepathy' thing, but I really don't understand what you're yelling at me for. Please, explain. I wanna fix it." He reached for her hand and she snatched it back. Her gaze softened for a moment at his timid behavior, but hardened again when she remembered what she was here for.

"Well, M," she said, mocking him, "you should know! We've been cautiously dancing around this for days, and i'm sick of it. If you won't admit to everyone that I'm you're 'girlfriend', 'boo', 'other half', whatever, maybe we should just end this now." She crossed her arms again defiantly.

Moose's face twisted in confusion and hurt. Definitely not what she was expecting. Her entire body crumpled on to the bed next to him.

"Moose," she said gently, "why are you ashamed of telling people I'm your girlfriend? I've met a ton of your friends, and you never tell them. I just want to know why you're so afraid to just jump." She took his hand in her's gently, trying to coax a response out of him.

"Camille," Moose rubbed his hands over his face. It was too early for this. "It has nothing to do with you "other half"," he teased gently, "I just don't want to rush into this." Ah, just as she suspected.

Camille felt awful for jumping down his throat. It's just, he makes her so mad sometimes. He's never been the 'lovey dovey' type, and she's been okay with that. She just wish he'd be a little open about his feelings so he'd know what's going on in that head of his.

"Moose, I'm sorry I overreacted. I wasn't thinking straight. Take all the time you need. I knew things were going to be...complicated. Especially after _her._" It still pained Camille to say her name; she tried to forget she even existed.

Moose slid an arm around her waist, and she rested her head on his chest. This made it all worthwhile. Just being here, with him. It didn't matter if no one knew or everyone knew. It wouldn't change what they had.

"Cammie, just so you know, I want to tell people. I want to show you off. You're my girl. Even if you can't dance as great as I can." His lips tugged up in a smug grin, and she giggled, punching him in the shoulder.

"Ow! Don't hurt me! I'm fragile!" He grabbed her fist in his hand, earning him another punch.

Camille got up and went to his dresser, puling out sweatpants to change into. Thank goodness her boyfriend was so scrawny that they were the same size.

As she pulled open the first drawer, the second, the third, she realized none of the clothes were there.

She sighed. "You didn't unpack yet, did you?" He gave a nervous smile, indicating that all of his belongings were still packed away in his trunk.

"You've been here for like, two months and you still haven't put your crap away? There's something severely wrong with you." Camille looked around for the said trunk, and found it sitting in the corner.

"You know C, were kind of like that old couple. Ruliet and Jomeo?"

Camille dug through piles and piles of stuff until she found sweats. Seriously, how many pairs of Nikes did he really need?

"Moose, you're a loser. It's Romeo and Juliet. And, we're nothing like them. Our parents don't hate each other, nor are we killing ourselves over the loss of the other."

She stood up and dusted her jeans off before walking across the room to the bathroom so she could change.

"Whoops, looks like I gotta catch up on my reading," He shouted. He blushed at his mistake, glad Camille couldn't see it.

"Yeah, considering we read that book in ninth grade. You sat next to...oh right. She-who-must-not-be-named. "

She walked out of the bathroom, and Moose decided that she looked flawless in anything she wears. It was three in the morning, her hair was frizzy from the rain, her makeup was running, and she was wearing his old sweats, but she had never looked so pretty to him.

"Harry Potter, Cam? Really? Are you twelve?"

"Shut up, that makes you like ten."

He stuck her tongue out at her. He could be such a child.

"Okay, 'Jomeo.' Let's get some sleep."

Camille climbed into his bed, pulling the covers over her, as did Moose. He nuzzled her hair lovingly, and she couldn't help but laugh at his cheesy gesture.

"Ew, Moose. My hair is nasty. It's like 4 in the morning and I smell like wet dog from the rain." He laughed and rolled on his back.

"You do not smell like wet dog. You'd be sleeping on the floor if you did. You've been hanging out with Kristin and Jenny way too much. You never used to care about stupid stuff like that."

"Yes, well, that's what happens when you abandon me. I'm forced to become a girl," she joked. His face fell slightly, and she noticed.

"Moose, it's fine. Forget about it. I did."

She cuddled into his chest, his arms wrapping around her. He kissed her forehead, and then her lips.

They both pulled apart, breathless. No matter how many times they kissed, they still had the same light headed reaction.

She closed her eyes and he closed his, both beginning to fall asleep to the beating of each other's hearts.

"Moose?"

"Yeah, Cam?"

"Just so you know, if you fall, I'll be there."

"Great, cause I'm fallin."

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**Ahhhh, so I love this. I seriously love the sugary sweet side of Moose, and I think it was about time Camille had a temper. She's been way too forgiving of him. Review please!**


	4. Gonna Stay Through It All

**Hey guys! It's been a few days since I've updated, I know, but bear with me. My life is in like crazy mode right now. I knew this would happen when the school year started up again, but I never knew I'd be this crazy busy! But anyway, I'm really going to try to start making my chapters longer. As you all probably know by now, I tend to think the story is going to be longer when I write it in a word document and then I upload it and I'm like 'wow, that's the shortest chapter ever.' Haha. But I'm definitely working on adding more to each chapter.**

**So, here's part 4 of Jump Then Fall!**

**Disclaimer: As much as I wish I did, I still own nothing.**

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_Baby, I'm never gonna leave you,  
Say that you wanna be with me too,  
'__Cause I'm gonna stay through it all,  
So jump then fall_

Moose and Camille go way back. Like, sandbox-way back. Literally.

They were in kindergarten; both in Mrs. Portillo's class. At recess during the first day of school, Moose spotted a boy playing in the sandbox all by himself. He felt bad; even at five years old, he was as genuine and caring as he is at nineteen. He walked over and sat down next to the boy, grabbed a shovel, and aimlessly began digging.

"My name's Robert," Moose continued, "but everyone calls me Moose 'cause they're my favorite animal." He smiled and straightened his back proudly.

"I'm Camille," Moose's eyes widened in shock, "but you can call me...Camille."

"You're not a boy! You're a girl! Ew! _Coo-ties_!" Camille's eyes hardened at his comment.

"DUH. Why did you think I was a boy? That's stupid."

"You have no hair." Camille took the baseball cap she was wearing off, revealing two pigtails.

"You're wearing boys clothes." She rolled her eyes at the comment.

"I have big brother, Tyler. I get his hand-me-downs." Moose's face reddened a little, embarrassed that he unintentionally made fun of her.

"Sorry. But, we still can't be friends. Girls have cooties!"

"No, I can't be friends with YOU because boys have cooties!"

"Do not!"

"Do too!"

"Do not!"

"DO TOO!"

"Do not times infin..."

"Children!"

Both Camille and Moose looked up to their teacher's angry face, and to everyone in the class staring at them.

"What is this about?" She crossed her arms, waiting for a response from the two. When neither of them spoke, she took their hands and led them to two separate corners of the playground.

"Now, you're in time out until someone tells me what happened, okay?"

"Yes Mrs. Portillo," both kids mumbled at the same time.

They sat there for twenty-five minutes before either of them decided to speak.

"Camille?" Moose whispered, hoping he wouldn't get in more trouble than he was already in.

"Yeah?" She whispered back, clearly agitated he was speaking to her.

"Sorry I thought you were a boy...and that I said you had cooties." She sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Fine. It's not your fault boys are stupid."

"WE ARE NOT!"

"ARE TOO!"

"ENOUGH!"

Five minutes later, they found themselves back in the classroom, facing each other in plastic chairs, Mrs. Portillo seated at her desk.

"You may go back to recess when you say you're sorry."

Camille crossed her arms and hardened her gaze at him, and he shifted uncomfortably.

"He should apologize first."

Mrs. Portillo looked at Moose, waiting for him to speak.

"I'm sorry I hurt your feelings."

The teacher smiled kindly, and switched her focus to Camille.

"Well, Camille? He apologized. You should say you're sorry, too."

"Okay. I'm sorry too."

The teacher beamed at both of them, telling them to go back outside and play with the other kids.

They had been silent for a while on the walk back to the playground, and Moose decided to be the first one to speak.

"Friends?" Moose said hopefully.

"Friends," Camille answered, and grabbed his hand as they reached the blacktop. They made their way back to the sandbox, ignoring the comments from the other kids about 'girls being friends with boys'.

"Camille, what's your favorite animal?" Camille thought for a moment, before answering "Lizards."

Moose laughed, hoping she would say that.

"Good, cause I'm gonna call ya 'Chameleon'."

Cliche enough, they'd been best friends ever since. And at this given moment, he'd never seen her so broken.

Sure, he'd seen her upset before. Plenty of times. When boyfriends broke up with her, when her hamster died, when she gave up dance. But never before had he actually seen her cry, until now, sitting in the middle of her floor, sobbing her eyes out.

He'd gotten the call just as he was about to leave for rehearsal, and quickly texted Jason and told him he wouldn't be there today. Something came up, something much more important. He ran to her dorm as fast as his feet would take him, running over half the population of the school, and practically banged the door down. He could hear her sobbing, and it broke his heart. After five minutes of knocking, it was obvious she wasn't going to answer.

"Chameleon, I heard what happened. It's me. Open the door so I can help you, honey."

He slid down to the floor, trying to coax her into opening it for fifteen minutes before her roommate came back from class. He told Kristin what happened, forgetting the feud he had with her, and she quickly unlocked the door and let him inside first.

That led him to where he currently is now, watching her in the fetal position in the middle of the room, pictures and other momentos strewn out around her. He slowly made his way over to her, making sure he didn't startle her. He picked up some of the photos and began to flip through them. The first was of him, Camille, and Tyler after the recital that got him into MSA, the second of Tyler holding Camille when she was just a year old, and the third of him, Tyler, and Camille at graduation. Tyler had been like a brother to him, and as much as he wanted to cry right now, he knew that he had to be strong for her.

He heard the sobs stop, and he looked up, meeting with the eyes he loved so much. The usual gleam gone, now filled with pain and sadness. In one swift motion he had scooped her up and was carrying her to the couch. He gently put her down, and she pulled him with her. She crawled over to his lap, nestling into his shirt and sobbing once again. He held her tight against him, caressing her hair in an attempt to stop the tears.

"Shh, baby it's okay. I know, I'm gonna miss him too." He felt her stiffen, and she was out of his lap and standing within seconds.

Kristin saw this and mumbled a 'goodbye' before hurrying out the door.

"Oh really? You're gonna miss him too? He was my brother, Moose! MY BROTHER! YOU CAN'T MISS HIM EVEN HALF AS MUCH AS I WILL!" Her knees gave out from under her, but luckily he caught her before she could hit the ground. He managed to pull her into a hug, much to her protest.

"I know he wasn't my brother, I know. But he was like a brother to me. I feel your pain, Cam." She struggled against him, and finally fought her way out of his grasp.

"YOU WILL NEVER KNOW WHAT THIS FEELS LIKE! JUST, GET OUT! LEAVE! GET OUT OF HERE!" She pushed him towards the door and swung it open, signaling for him to go.

He knew fighting with her wouldn't be the best thing to do right now, so he shook his head and did as he wanted her too. He heard the door slam behind him, and he walked down the hallway towards the elevator.

He stopped; letting what was going on finally hit him. He slid down the wall, losing his composure in the process. Tyler taught him everything he knew; he was honestly the closest thing he had to a brother, and now he was gone.

He remembered the last time they talked. It had been about three months ago, the first day he met the Pirates. He knew Tyler would know about them; he knew virtually every crew in the street dancing community, but he also knew his sister. He told him that she wouldn't be very happy if she knew he was dancing again, especially after the promise they made the day they graduated about 'doing the real world together.'

But he also remembered something else. He'd made a promise to Tyler; a promise he intended to keep. He'd swore to him that he wouldn't leave Cam, that he'd protect her because Tyler couldn't from LA.

Moose pulled himself off the ground and walked right back to her door, not even bothering to knock because Kristin had already unlocked it.

He swung the door open, prepared to argue with her about him not leaving, but she didn't say a word. She stared at him from the couch for a few moments before practically tackling him. Her wild sobbing started again, and he clutched her tighter, almost as if he was holding her together.

He felt her knees start to buckle, and he gently let them both fall to the floor. She settled into his lap, nestling even closer, if possible. He buried his face in her hair, taking in her pomegranate shampoo.

They didn't speak for a while; nothing really needed to be said. He just held her, running his fingers through her hair. After what seemed like forever, she wiped at her eyes and looked up at him.

"I'm sorry about before. It wasn't fair to say those things to you, especially since Ty was a part of your life too." He saw her eyes welling up again, and he caressed the side of her face.

"Don't even worry. You didn't mean it. You were just emotional. It's chill." She smiled at him before crawling off of his lap and sitting beside him on the floor.

She picked up the picture of Tyler holding her when she was little.

"I can't believe he's gone,'" she rubbed his face on the picture, "poor Nora is a mess right now. When we go out for the funeral we gotta stay with her. She insisted."

He nodded, not really knowing what to say, but she interpreted it differently.

"I guess you wanna leave me now, seeing my emotional instability and all." He grabbed her hand, trying to get her to look at him.

"Chameleon Rochelle Gage," Moose said in a hardened tone, "don't you ever think I'll go anywhere. I'm never gonna leave you, you got that? I'll be here through it all. No matter how much you push me away, you can't get rid of me." She gripped his hand harder.

"I wouldn't want to."

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**Insert "awwwwww!" here. Okay, super cheesy, I know. But hey, I love happy endings. Haha. Anyways, the way they meet is actually a true story, it's how I met my friend Adam in kindergarten. I thought it would be fun to throw in there.**

**Oh, and thanks to the people who review this story! Seriously guys, if you didn't, I'd just stop writing it. It keeps me going.**

**You know what to do next! Review!**


	5. You've Got The Keys To Me

**Hey everyone, sorry for the delayed update! I've been really sick, and I just started feeling better about a week ago. But I'm all better now, so I'm going to try and keep this story moving. I already have some ideas for another one, but I'm writing this and the collaboration with Kate-Emma (which is called 'If You Were There', by the way, for those who haven't read it) and I don't think I could handle a third story right now on top of school and everything. But thank you so much to my loyal reviewers, you guys help me keep writing! So here's part 5 of Jump Then Fall!**

**Disclaimer: I didn't suddenly win the lottery, so I still do not own the Step Up franchise.**

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_Well, I like the way your hair falls in your face,  
You got the keys to me I love each freckle on your face, oh,  
I've never been so wrapped up,  
Honey, I like the way you're everything I've ever wanted_

Moose didn't understand how Camille found herself ugly. She always complains about how she just doesn't match up to other girls he's gone out with, but he knew better. By "girls" he meant Sophie, and to him, Sophie's got nothing on her. He didn't know why she put herself down, and how she couldn't see what he does.

Whenever he tells her she's beautiful, she gets all defensive and starts pointing out her flaws; flaws no one but her sees. Apparently, her freckles are "obnoxious and make me look five," and her hair is "bushy and looks like a giant knot."

One day, he just couldn't take it anymore. So while she was in the bathroom, he propped a chair under the handle and slid down in front of the door.

"Moose? Moose, why is the door locked?" She jiggled the handle and noticed it was blocked, and immediately panicked.

"Moose! Is everything okay? Seriously, if you're there let me out!" She banged on the door with her fist, trying with all her might to knock it down.

Moose sighed, ready for the potential fight that was about to take place.

"Cam, I need you to hear me out. And I figure if I lock you in the bathroom, you have no choice but to listen and not try and change the subject."

"This is considered kidnapping, idiot. LET ME OUT! YOU KNOW I DON'T LIKE SMALL SPACES!" She pounded her fists harder on the door, but soon gave up when she realized she wasn't going to get anywhere by being angry. She leaned her forehead against it and sighed heavily.

"Fine. If you let me out, I agree to listen to you and keep my mouth shut. But be warned, if this is you trying to break up with me, you have to face the wrath of Kristin. She's in the kitchen and you know she has like supersonic hearing." She huffed loudly, still not taking her head off the door.

Moose laughed and shook his head, taking the chair away from the door and turning the handle. He was hit by a strong force in his chest, and realized she was leaning up against the door and wasn't prepared for it to be opened.

"You're a jerk, you know that? You know I'm claustrophobic!" She hit him hard in the shoulder, but still allowed him to take her hand.

"Cammie, sit down. Please. I gotta get some stuff off my chest."

She looked at him quizzically, taking in his suddenly serious expression and nodded her head, taking a seat on the couch.

She watched him pace back and forth in front of her for about five minutes before she finally grew agitated.

"Moose, get a grip! You're freaking me out!" He stopped abruptly at her words and took a step towards her.

"You know I love you, right?" She furrowed her eyebrows at his question, wondering where the conversation was going.

"Well, yeah. I mean, you've never really said it, but I know you're not good with feelings. I just kinda figured." He nodded his head, starting his pacing again.

"Well, if you love me, you should trust me. You should believe what I say to you, but you don't."

She got up from her place on the couch and stepped in front of him, grabbing him by the shoulders so he'd stop walking.

"Moose, where is this going? What is the about?" He took both of her hands and sat her down on the couch with him, facing her so he could see her eyes, although she stared at her feet.

"Cam, you're beautiful. You're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen, but you don't see it. And that bothers me. It bothers me that you don't see how...breathtaking you are." He let go of her hand and grabbed her knee, trying to get her to look at him. She shook her head in disagreement, and he grabbed both sides of her face.

"Don't. Don't you dare, Camille. Just listen to me." Her eyes widened at his harsh tone, and she nodded in response, sitting back in the couch to be more comfortable.

"You don't see it, babe. You don't see how the freckles on your nose make you adorable. How you've got me like, whipped, and I don't mind admitting it. How I'd to anything for you. How you're the prettiest when your hair is crazy and in your face. I mean, not that you're not drop-dead all the time. Because you are." He was getting flustered, and she realized that he'd never been this honest with someone before.

She stared at him for a few seconds before grabbing him by the collar and kissing him with so much passion, she thought she was going to faint. When they pulled away, they were both blushing wildly and breathing heavily. She went to speak, and he put a hand over her mouth.

"I wasn't done yet. You don't see how every guy that passes you stops and stares, but somehow, you never look in their direction. You don't even notice. You just look at me. I couldn't be prouder to say you're my girl, Cam. You're everything I've ever wanted, and everything Sophie never had. I will tell you every day how beautiful you are until you believe it."

She had never had a guy say that to her before. She never felt as special as she did now. The way he looked at her like she was the only girl in the world made her heart want to burst. She looked at him with gleaming eyes before breaking out in her 100 watt smile.

"Moose, I could never look at another guy the way I look at you. Not since I met you in kindergarten and you called me a boy." They both laughed, remembering how they met back when they were kids.

"I didn't know me not thinking I'm pretty bothered you this much. But right now, right here, I feel like the most beautiful girl in the world."

He pulled her to him, rubbing his nose in her hair.

"Moose," she whispered, "you make me beautiful."

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**Alright, corny, I know, but seriously, I just love mushy, lovey-dovey stories so much, I just can't help but write them. And I know it's short, but once again, I've been sick. I hope you guys like it, tell me if you want some more drama! Review!**


	6. Had Time to Think It Over

**Alright, so I've had the worst writer's block ever lately on this story. I don't know what's wrong with me. But! I watched Step Up and Step Up 2: The Streets and was suddenly inspired.**

**Oh, and thanks so much for the get well wishes & the fantastic reviews on both this and 'Speak Now.' It really means a lot that you guys take time to give me feedback.**

**Disclaimer: I still don't own anything.**

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_I had time to think it over,  
All I can say is come closer,  
Take a deep breath and jump,  
Then fall in to me_

"Cam, honey, don't be like this. I just need some time." He watched her flinch at his words, almost as if in pain, before hastily gathering her things from around the room.

He'd been helping her study for an English test she had tomorrow, and somehow, they wound up in an argument.

The more things she stuffed in her bag, the more angry she seemed to get. Although her back was to him, he could see her quickly wipe the tears that fell from her eyes. He didn't mean to upset her, that was never his intention.

"YOU KNOW WHAT MOOSE? TAKE ALL THE DAMN TIME YOU NEED. WE'RE DONE." Moose winced as his girlfriend flew out of his dorm room, slamming the door behind her. He knew this wouldn't end well; all he wanted to do was talk to her about taking a step back, about how he thought things were moving tot fast.

He did love her. He knew that much. But the love he had for her was beginning to freak him out. He'd never been in love before, and to his knowledge, nor had she. He was hoping she'd feel the same way and agree to give him time. Apparently not.

He knew he should've been a little more sensitive with his words, but sometimes, she just made him so angry. Her opinion was always the most important to him, so when she said negative things, he really took them to heart.

Their arguments always ended like this. One person angry, but both people hurt.

Moose sat on his bed, mind still reeling from the fight that had just taken place. He'd gotten what he wanted: time. But why did it hurt so much?

He ran his hands up and down his face. Moose felt like his heart had been ripped from his chest, and maybe that's because when she walked out, it went with her.

Moose knew he was wrong. But if he went to her now, she probably wouldn't listen. He knew it was best to let her cool off.

The next morning, Moose rolled out of bed and ran his hands through his messy curls. He hadn't slept well; the conflict inside of his head made him toss and turn all night. It took all of his strength to get up in the middle of the night and run to her dorm.

Since he didn't sleep, he did a lot of thinking. He'd come to a conclusion about everything, and he needed to tell Cam as soon as humanly possible.

He walked into the dining hall, craning his neck to look for his favorite head of brown tresses. He saw no sign of her and frowned; she was always at breakfast at seven. Most of her classes didn't start till eleven, but she never slept past seven on weekdays, claiming she'd sleep right through her classes if she did.

Moose spotted Kristin at a table in the far corner. She wasn't his favorite person, but hey, he was desperate. He made his way over and set his tray down next to her's.

"Ugh, it's you. You're the reason I didn't sleep at all last night, lover boy." She slammed her book down and sent him a cold glare. He nervously smiled at her: he needed information, and now was not the time to piss her off.

"Well, why do you say that, Kris?" She rolled her eyes at him, picking her book up again.

"Don't call me Kris, Alexander. Camille has been crying her eyes out since she came storming into our room last night. I know it's your fault." His eyes widened. He didn't realize he'd upset her _that_ much.

Kristin softened her gaze at him. Maybe he wasn't _that _bad. She sighed heavily and turned towards him.

"Here, take my key. I'll be here for at least another hour or two. My class doesn't start until one, I can't be around that poor girl's tears, and the library's closed. My book just started getting good!" He grabbed her key from her, muttering a 'thanks' before slinging his bag over his shoulder.

His class started at nine, but she was way more important than some boring public speaking class.

He made his way up the stairs to her room, forgetting it was on the fifth floor. By the time he was at the top, he was breathing heavily and sweating.

'_Charming,' _he thought to himself, _'just the way I want to look when I beg for her forgiveness.'_

He made his way to her door and stuck the key in the knob, jiggling it slightly to open it. He couldn't believe the sight before him. Seriously, was there a tornado last night?

Books were strewn all over her desk, clothes were everywhere, and her comforter was thrown haphazardly on the floor. Moose frowned; Camille was never messy. In her words, "there's a place for everything and everything has it's place."

He heard the shower start. He looked at his watch: he had at least twenty-five minutes. That girl took showers long enough to cause a drought.

He made her bed, piled her books, and threw her clothes in a hamper. Yeah, he's never really cleaned before, but now's a good a time as ever to start. He looked at his watch again as he heard the shower stop. Twenty minutes exactly. He took a seat on her bed and waited.

The door to the bathroom flung open and a towel-clad Camille rushed out, not once glancing in his direction. She dug through her dresser to find some clothes, and when she did, he cleared his throat.

Camille whipped around and jumped back against the dresser, screaming in surprise.

"OH MY...Moose! You scared the crap out of me! What is wrong with you?" She flung a hand to her chest over her racing heart.

"Sorry, Cammie. I just wanted to talk..." She stiffened and turned back to her dresser, not responding.

"I forgot I was mad at you. Can you leave?" She grabbed her clothes and made her way to the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

Moose didn't move, hoping she wouldn't totally freak out on him when she came out of the bathroom. He took a deep breath and prepared himself for the worst.

Camille flung the door open, once again, and pulled her English book out of the pile. She made her way to her desk and flipped through the pages, grabbing a hi lighter and getting to work.

"I see you cleaned. Well, thank you, Robert. But I think it would be best if you left now." She turned a page absentmindedly, not turning around to meet his eyes.

He walked to his girlfriend's chair, grabbed it, and wheeled it over in front of the bed. Moose plopped back on the bed again, whipping the chair around to face him.

"Moose I have to study. Let me go!" He didn't listen and tried to grab her hands, but she kept pulling them back.

She was babbling on and on about failing her English test and Moose couldn't take it anymore. He grabbed her face in his hands and kissed her. She reciprocated the kiss at first, but then pushed him away suddenly.

"No, Moose. We're not in a relationship anymore. You can't just...do stuff like that." Her eyes shone with unshed tears, and he realized how bad he screwed up.

"Camille, I did not break-up with you. I just said I needed time." She rolled her eyes and averted her gaze out the window behind him.

"It's the same thing, Moose. You take time, and then you never come back." She looked down at her hands, refusing to look at him.

"Did I ever tell you what happened between Dan and I?" He knitted his eyebrows in confusion and shook his head, and she let out a heavy sigh.

"I really liked him, Moose. And then, out of the blue, he said he needed some space, some time. I said it was okay, and that he could take all the time he needed. I didn't want to be pushy and make him think I was clingy. Well one day, I stayed late after school. I was walking to my locker when I passed the rehearsal room on the second floor," she took a deep breath and continued, "he was in there. He was rehearsing, all right, but not any dance moves. He was making out with some random girl I had never seen before. Turn's out, the "time" he needed's name was Caroline, and he had been dating her while he was dating me." She stared straight at the ground, not once looking up.

His heart broke for her. He knew she had relationships, but never really told him much about them.

"Cam, why didn't you tell me this until now? All you told me was that you 'mutually agreed' that it was done." She looked at him for the first time since they started talking and he took in her appearance. Her eyes were barren of the spark always in them, and she had dark circles. What is wrong with him?

"You honestly think I wanted to tell you, the guy I've liked since ever, about a boyfriend cheating on me? No. And that's when you were dating Sophie. I felt...alone. And then Dan came along and he liked me, Moose, and and I felt okay again. And then he just. I don't know, turned out to be like every other guy."

"Baby, I would never do that. Ever. I'm sorry, I made a mistake and I'm sorry. I don't need time, or space. I just need you." Her eyes brightened for a second, and then went dull again.

"How do I know that, Moose? How can I be sure?" He grabbed her hands and she let him this time, pulling her towards him. They sat knee-to-knee and he stared deeper into her eyes.

"Because, Camille. I love you. When you walked out, I realized I made the biggest mistake, of my life. I went to Kristin looking for you. And you know how much I despise that girl." She laughed and shook her head, and Moose felt a weight lifted off his shoulders.

He laid back on the bed and patted the space next to him. "Come here."

She obliged, falling back on the bed beside him. He interlaced their fingers and turned his head to look at her.

"Cam, remember when you told me that when I fell, you'd be there?" She nodded her head in response. "Well, I need you to take a deep breath, trust me, and fall too." She smiled at him and nuzzled beside him, resting her head on his chest.

"Alright, then. Promise you'll catch me?"

"C, I couldn't drop you if I tried."

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**This was so hard for me to write, but I like it. I hope you guys do too! Review! **


	7. You Shine, I Shine

**Sorry for the semi-delayed update guys, I have had trouble being inspired lately. But I think I'm finally back into the swing of things. Anyway, enjoy part 7!**

**Dedicated reviewers, I appreciate the feedback so much. You guys are the best, and I'm so grateful.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

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_Every time you smile, I smile,  
And every time you shine,  
I'll shine for you_

Moose shifted uncomfortably in his seat, glancing at the time on his phone for the twentieth time since he'd sat down. _'This damn show was supposed to start twenty minutes ago. What the hell is going on?' _Almost as if on cue, the lights dimmed in the stuffy auditorium and the last of the crowd took their seats.

You see, one would commonly not find Robert Alexander III amongst excited parents and nervous teachers. But here he was, sitting awkwardly between a very impatient mother and a bored kid playing some obnoxious video game, while being kicked by a toddler in the seat behind him. To his dismay, Camille decided to take dance classes at a studio around the corner from the campus. A waste of time, if you ask him.

Moose really didn't understand why she'd rather pay a monthly fee to dance in a pair of tights and an uncomfortable leotard when she could dance at the Vault for free in whatever she wanted.

At least, that's what he'd told her when she asked. In truth, he had grown jealous of her love of ballet. She was always at the studio, and he really wasn't prepared for how fantastic she had become.

He knew she'd always been good at dance; street dance, that is. As ashamed as he was to say it, he'd never actually seen her do ballet. Of course he was aware she trained to be a ballerina in high school, because her drive to dance in a company was the reason he never asked her to join the MSA crew. He couldn't do that to her; asking her to dance with them would've made her lose focus.

Putting aside his feelings about the subject, he agreed to go to her recital, promising her that he'd be there no matter what. As much as he thought they were boring as hell, he loved her, and it would mean a lot to her if he went. So he did.

Moose rested his chin on his hand that was on the arm rest, earning him a glare from the woman beside him. He smiled awkwardly and sat up straighter, clapping as the seemingly hundredth group made their way off the stage.

The lights when completely dark then and a single spotlight hit the center. There, in the middle of the stage, stood his girlfriend. He didn't recognize her at first, seeing as the usually laid-back tomboy was dressed in a rhinestoned costume with pink pointe shoes.

He was mesmerized. The applause died down and the music started as she lifted her arms above her head. He checked his program; halfway down the page he spotted her name, with the word 'Aurora' next to it. _'Who the hell is Aurora?'_

Then it hit him. Aurora is Sleeping Beauty. He knew that because she always talked about how Tyler had taken her to see the ballet on her twelfth birthday. That's when she fell head-over-heels in love with the classical style, and decided to go to MSA.

Camille, _his _Camille, was cast as the lead in the piece her teacher had chosen for the class. He always knew she was special, and he was glad that others noticed it, too.

Watching her, his heart swelled with pride. She glided gracefully around stage, arms extended, a large smile on her face. She looked so happy, the happiest he'd seen her in a long time.

For a moment, he grew angry with Director Collins. Camille was so much better than Sophie, how could he not see that? She was always in the background, while Sophie was constantly in the spotlight. He wished that he had marched right up to him and gave him a piece of his mind, demanding that he give Camille a chance.

As the music ended, the crowd applauded, rising to their feet to give a standing ovation. His previous thoughts left his mind as he stood, clapping louder than anyone, catching Camille's attention. Her smile grew bigger when she locked eyes with him, and he could see tears in her eyes. He winked at her and she giggled, taking one last final bow before exiting the stage.

The last four dances seemed to last forever for Moose, who just wanted to go and congratulate his girlfriend. At last, the final dance ended and he shot up, climbing over the row of people and making his way towards the stage door.

He stood there for twenty minutes, tapping his foot impatiently. He dialed her number, hoping she had turned her phone back on after the show.

"Hey, I'll be out in five minutes. I just gotta get all this crap off my face." The line went dead and he laughed, knowing her hatred for make-up. That's one of the things he loves about her: she's naturally beautiful and never gets all fussy about that superficial stuff.

The stage door swung open finally, revealing the person Moose had anxiously been waiting for. He hurriedly grabbed her bag, threw in on the floor and engulfed her in a bone crushing hug.

"Well hello to you too!" He pulled back a bit and kissed her hard on the mouth, bringing his hands to cup her cheeks.

"Woah, what was that for? I mean, not that I minded." He laughed at her comment and rested his forehead against her's, moving his hands to her waist.

"Cammie, you were amazing. Why didn't I know you could dance like that?" She shook her head and looked away, embarrassed by the praise she was receiving.

"I dunno. I mean, I was good in high school, but these classes were just phenomenal and made me a better dancer. The teachers taught a lot more than how to be in the background. I guess they just let me shine, something MSA never let me do." He hugged her again, kissing her neck tenderly.

"Well, they should've. Seriously, Camille, you were brilliant. I can't wait until next year's recital." She smirked slyly at him and he knew she was up to something.

"I know that devious look. What are you planning, Cam?" She rolled her eyes and slapped him lightly on the shoulder, grabbing her bag and making her way to the exit. He fell in step next to her as they walked towards the bus stop.

"You know how you're a double major in dance, right?" He nodded in response, brows furrowed in confusion.

"Well, I may or may not have had a talk with the dean last week. And he may or may not have approved me to have a double major in dance, too. And I may or may not be taking ballet classes at NYU next year." He stopped dead in his tracks, a shocked look taking over his face.

That worried Camille. She was slightly afraid that he would think she was only doing it because he was. But she was assured that was not the case when he broke into a smile and gathered her in his arms, picking her up and spinning her around.

"Moose! Put me down!" They both laughed and he set her on the ground, not taking his arms from around her waist and she not taking her's from his shoulders.

"So you're not mad, then?" He gave her a questioning look, shaking his head.

"C, why would I be mad at you for that?" She absentmindedly played with a curl near his neck

"I was just worried you'd think I was stealing your thunder, you know? That I was only doing it because you were. But in reality, these classes made me fall so much in love with dance again. I never thought I could, but I did. And the teachers showed me it was okay to step into the spotlight once in a while." He grabbed her hand, continuing their journey to the bus stop.

"I would never think that. Seriously, I'm psyched were gonna hopefully have the same classes. I'm glad that we can both finally shine. _Together._"

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**Seriously, this chapter took me forever to write. I needed to find a way to get Camille back into dance for future chapters, but I couldn't figure out how. Regardless, I'm really happy with how this turned out, and I hope you all are too. Review, pretty please?**


	8. Jump Then Fall, Into Me

**Gah, I know. I'm seriously the worst updater ever. But I've been dealing with finals and all that, so I'm on break now and updates will be more frequent...I hope. Anyway, I'm hoping to change it up a bit in the next few chapters, since I feel like I've been too sappy with this pairing. Hope you guys like it!**

**Disclaimer: Unless I've unknowingly hit the lottery lately (which I haven't) I don't own anything.**

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_Whoa, I'm feeling you baby,  
Don't be afraid to,  
Jump then fall,  
Jump then fall, into me_

Camille walked the all too familiar streets of New York, alone, at half past midnight. Of course she knew it was a bad idea, but she was absolutely, under no circumstances, going to go back to that dorm. She'd rather sleep on a bench in Central Park.

She was well aware she was being irrational, once again. He didn't _mean_ to offend her. He just really doesn't think before he speaks, and she overreacted, as always.

They were having a nice time, cuddling on the couch in his room and watching the latest _Saw_ movie. She'd never been a fan of scary movies, but he had; and being a girl, she wasn't about to pass up an opportunity to cling on to her boyfriend for dear life.

They heard a knock on the door and she got up to answer it, relieved she'd be able to get away from the movie for even a few seconds. Stephenie, Moose's neighbor, wanted to hang out, and being nice, she invited her in.

How was Camille supposed to know that she was madly in love with Moose? It's not like she could read minds or something.

The two made their way to the couch, a girl on either side of Moose. Camille didn't like how she sat a little _too _close for comfort, and how she kept smirking at him. She grabbed his hand and pulled his arm around her shoulders, snuggling into his side, and showing this Stephenie girl he was already taken.

Of course, that didn't stop her from basically jumping on to his lap every time something slightly frightening occurred. Moose was obviously uncomfortable; he'd always been awkward around girls, especially now that he was stuck in the middle of two.

By the end of the movie Camille had enough of her antics and narrowed her eyes at the girl, earning an evil smirk. What was this girl's issue?

"That's it." Camille said defiantly and grabbed the remote, turning the movie off.

"Chameleon, it was almost over! Literally five minutes left." He whined, and Camille shot a hard glare at him.

"It can wait. Believe me."

She got up off the couch and walked to the other side, pulling the girl up and pushing her towards the door.

"Stay away from my boyfriend. I saw the way you were eyeing him. He's not a piece of meat. So just back off, okay?"

Stephenie struggled in Camille's grasp and managed to free herself, rubbing the spot Camille's grip had recently loosened.

"God, you've got a grip like a guy. Whatever, I'm out. It's not worth it." She made a beeline for the door and slammed it behind her.

Camille continued to glare at the door, fists clenched, until she felt a pair of arms wrap around her from behind.

"You're cute when you're jealous." He whispered in her ear, nuzzling her neck affectionately. She scoffed and pulled out of his grasp, turning to face him.

"Yeah, well someone had to say something, since you weren't." She crossed her arms and sat into her right hip, waiting for a response.

"What are you talking about Camille?" He took a step forward and she took a step back, holding her hands out in front of her.

"Are you freaking blind, Moose? She was hitting on you. If I hadn't stopped her, she would probably still be sitting on your lap." He shook his head at her, running a hand through his curls.

"Stop that," she said suddenly, "you know it's impossible for me to be mad at you when you do that hair thing. It's just too cute." Her tone was cold, hoping he would sense that she was still angry. Apparently he didn't since he smiled and tried to take another step towards her.

"Oh no, no, you're not off the hook. Seriously, why didn't you stop her? You just sat there like an idiot!" Moose rolled his eyes at her, turning to walk back at the couch.

"Camille, you're being irrational. You always do that."

Well, that statement right there just set her off.

"What do you mean I _always_ do that? I'm not irrational, I'm just not stupid. Seriously, five more minutes and she would've just attacked your face. You're so oblivious. Thinking that everything is just great and not taking the time to freaking open your eyes and see what's going on around you. _You always do that._" She repeated his last statement back at him and he met her glare with one equally as hard.

He never even imagined of arguing with her. But lately, she just makes him so mad. She can get to him like no one else can.

"Well if I'm so "oblivious", why don't you find a new boyfriend, Camille?" She winced at the usage of her full name. He _rarely_ ever calls her Camille.

"One that doesn't live in a bubble and meets you're perfect expectations. Sometimes, Cam, I just feel like I'm not good enough for you. Now's your chance to find someone who his."

He flipped the television back on and settled back into the sofa to watch the ending of the movie that had started it all, acting like what he just said didn't just tear Camille's heart in two.

She stood there, a look of hurt and confusion on her face, and took in what just happened. Her head was spinning and she hoped she was just having a horrible nightmare. Tears were threatening to fall any minute now, and she didn't care.

Sure, they'd "broken up" before, but this just seemed so...official.

She grabbed her coat and took off, not even bothering to close the door behind her.

Once the sound of her frantic footsteps disappeared from his ears, Moose crumpled. He shut the t.v. off and threw the remote, not really caring where it landed. He dropped his head in his hands, running them up and down his face.

What the hell had he just done?

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Camille found herself outside of the Vault. She didn't even realize her feet had carried her there until she looked up and saw dancing figures through one of the windows.

It was the middle of the night, the middle of the winter, and about twenty below zero. Or that's what it felt like, at least, as the wind hit her wet face. Taking a deep breath, she made her way inside.

The elevator ride to the top had been the longest twenty seconds of her life. What if they didn't care? What if they said that Moose was their friend first, so they couldn't get involved with this? She had no other place to go, considering her roommate invited her friend from home to stay the weekend and Camille volunteered to stay at her boyfriend's place.

The word boyfriend stabbed her heart like a knife.

'_Boyfriend,' _Camille thought, '_well, ex-boyfriend now.'_

She arrived at her destination, taking another deep breath and knocking on the door. She could hear loud music and laughter and hoped she was interrupting anything.

Jason was the one who answered the door, laughing at something Jacob had said before taking a look at her. His smile faded when he saw her face.

"Hi," she said weakly, "I know it's really late and I probably have no right being here..."

She couldn't finish her sentence because Jason had engulfed her in a hug. Out of the entire crew she knew she could depend on him; he became like an older brother to her.

She pulled back and looked at his soaked shirt, not even realizing that she had been sobbing. He threw an arm around her and lead her back to the crew.

The whole crew sat in the living area, waiting for Anala to come back with the tea. Camille heard shuffling and felt a cup of tea being pushed into her hands.

"Thanks," she mumbled weakly and continued to stare at her knees.

"Camille," she felt the older girl place a hand on her shoulder, "what happened? It's one in the morning, something must have happened for you to come all the way here in the middle of the night."

Her breath faltered and she let out a sob she was trying to conceal. The girl's gentle tone hit her hard; she wasn't expecting them to care about her this much.

"Moose. We, uh, well..." She looked awkwardly at the faces of ten other people sitting around her and Anala seemed to understand.

"Guys, why don't you go to bed. It's girl talk." They all shook their heads in agreement, heading off to their rooms. They definitely did not want to hear their girl talk. Jason stayed behind, though, insisting she could tell him. It's not like his wife, Anala, wouldn't tell her what they talked about anyways.

"Alright, Cam. Start from the beginning."

Camille told the entire story, beginning to end, in what seemed like one breath. She didn't know she'd been holding it in so long and that it was so desperate to get out.

"And then he just told me to find a new boyfriend. One that was perfect. Is he honestly that stupid? He is perfect. I only tell him that, like, all the damn time." She rubbed a hand over her forehead, trying to stop her headache from developing into a migraine.

"Cam," Anala said hesitantly, taking the younger girl's hand, "he's always felt like he wasn't good enough. He just never voiced it. He's always saying how you're too pretty, too smart, too amazing, and that one day you'll realize that and leave him. I don't think it had anything to do with what you said, sweetie, I think it was just his insecurities finally coming out." Anala smiled gently at the girl, squeezing her hand to comfort her.

Camille nodded sadly, not wanting to look into the girl's eyes in fear of breaking down again.

There was a knock at the door and Anala knew who it would be. While Jason answered it, she ushered Camille into Luke's old room and told her to get some sleep.

She walked back down the hallway to join her husband and the unexpected, yet quite expected, visitor.

"Please, man, I gotta see her. I screwed up." Moose tried to push his way past Jason and failed, seeing that there was no way between Jason and the door.

"Moose, you did not just witness that poor girl breaking down, man. It was the saddest thing I've seen. You know she's like a sister to me. You can't expect me to let you in the door after what you did." Moose sighed in frustration and hit the wall beside him, Jason falling back a few steps due to the sudden outburst of the always calm teenager.

"Damn it, Jason, I love her! Please, just let me talk to her." Jason felt his wife's hand on his back and turned towards her, moving aside when she smiled gently at him.

"She's in Luke's old room." He sighed and smiled at her, thanking her as he walked by.

"But," he felt her grab his arm, "she's in bad shape right now. Please, don't say anything stupid. You've screwed up enough for one night." She patted his arm and he took off towards his girlfriend.

Anala grabbed Jason's hand and rubbed her thumb on the back of it.

"A round of DDR before bed?" She let go of his hand and made her way towards the game system.

"Psh, you're on."

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Moose paced outside the door, hearing the muffled cries of Camille. He needed to think about what he was going to say. He screwed up and he knew that, but he didn't mean anything he said.

He loved her, and love made people do and say crazy things. She was everything to him, and he couldn't lose her now. He'd never lived without her since they met, and he wasn't about to start.

He boldly knocked on the door before he lost his sudden rush of confidence.

He heard the door unlock, a signal that it was okay to go in.

By the time he had opened the door, she was already back in bed. The room looked nice; Jacob had renovated it and turned it into the guest bedroom, moving the office upstairs.

His eyes adjusted to the lack of light and he could make out a lump on the bed, under the covers.

"Cammie," Moose said, his tone gentle and cautious. He slowly started making his way to the bed.

"What do you want?" She spat as angrily as she could, but unfortunately, it wasn't very convincing.

"Babe, I'm sorry. You know I'd never intentionally hurt you. I didn't mean what I said." She scoffed under the covers and he sat down on the edge of the bed, hoping she was aware of his presence there.

"Moose, you wouldn't have said it if you didn't mean it." He could hear her voice falter and she sniffled, slightly moving over towards the other side of the bed, away from him.

"Cammie, Please." He placed a hand on what he presumed to be her arm and he was right. Instead of pulling away like he thought she would, she melted into his touch.

"Alright. But we're talking about this tomorrow morning. You're not off the hook yet mister. I'm just too tired to fight." She shimmed up out of the covers a little and he could see her forehead. He kicked his shoes off and climbed under the covers next to her.

He took a good look at her face and gulped. Her mascara was smudged everywhere and her eyes were red. He wiped her cheeks with his hand and she grabbed it, bringing it towards her lips and kissing his palm.

She rolled over, her back to his chest, and pulled his arm with her so it was tight around her waist. He snuggled into her and dropped a kiss on her shoulder.

"Hey, Cammie?" He buried his face in her hair, loving the smell of her shampoo.

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry." She patted his hand.

"I know."

"Cam, remember when I told you if you fell I'd catch you, just like you caught me?" She nodded.

"Do you think...do you think you could trust me and fall again?"

"Moose, I never got back up."

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**So much for not making it sappy...yeah I'll try to make it not sappy in the next chapter. Review, please!**


	9. Never Gonna Leave You, Part 1

**I'm so so so so sorry for not updating sooner! **

**This was originally written for Thanksgiving. But since I'm an awful updater, I changed it to fit Christmas. It's a "Moose and Camille go home for the holidays" piece. This one's going to have either two or three parts because I owe you all for not updating in over a month. And I promise there will only be about a day or two between chapters. So, Happy Holidays everyone!**

**Oh, and I made up a name for Moose's mom. Linda, since they just have her credited as "Mrs. Alexander." And Camille's Foster Parents are the same ones as the first movie. They didn't mention much about them in the third so I just them the same people.**

**Disclaimer: I pinky promise I don't own anything.**

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_Baby, I'm never gonna leave you,  
__Say that you wanna be with me too,  
__Cause I'm gonna stay through it all so jump then fall_

Camille shifted uncomfortably in her seat on the bus. In an hour, she'd be home with her family; well, her foster parents, but still family. She'd get to see her friends, maybe visit MSA, and spend the holiday with Moose's family.

Oh, yeah. That.

This was their first Christmas being a couple; their first holiday going home as a couple, really. Their families really weren't big into Thanksgiving, but their parents came down and took the pair out to eat.

Sure, she knew and loved his family. It was tradition to go to the Alexander's for a giant dinner, seeing as their mothers were best friends and their fathers loved to talk about power tools and all that manly stuff.

Usually, Moose, Camille, and sometimes Ty and Nora would hang out in his room, watch the cheesy Christmas movies that always came on that night, and pig out until they couldn't possibly fit anymore food in their stomachs. They'd open some gifts, play some ridiculous games, and afterwards, Uncle Burt would play the piano and they'd sing carols.

But this year might be a tad different.

In all the years past, they were never a couple. They never cuddled or held hands, as much as she thought about it since she'd had a crush on him since forever. They'd never called each other 'boyfriend' or 'girlfriend', and they most definitely, definitely did not kiss.

She loved Moose, and he loved her, and they were comfortable around each other, but Camille couldn't help but think about how awkward the festivities might turn out to be. Surely, they would be teased by every one with phrases like 'It's about time,' or 'It took you long enough!'

She bit down hard on one of her nails, a nervous habit that she'd really been meaning to break. She really wanted to stop worrying about what was going to happen. But what if his family secretly didn't like her? They had always _seemed _to like her, but what if they were just being nice?

Camille but down on yet another nail, hissing and wincing from the pain of biting a hangnail. In the process, she managed to accidentally kick Moose in the ankle and wake him from his slumber. He jumped at the contact, his headphones slipping onto his neck and his engineering book falling from his lap.

"Geez, Cam, can you warn a guy?" He removed his headphones from their place on his neck and threw them in his backpack, along with the textbook.

"Sorry, M. Hangnail." She raised her hand to show him and he grabbed it, inspecting it playfully.

"Yup, still got all five fingers. You're fine." She chuckled at him and tore her hand away.

"Thanks, Dr. Rob. Much appreciated." She rolled her eyes and cracked her knuckles. She knew it was a bad idea right after she did it.

"What's up? You crack your knuckles when you're nervous. And you just did."

"I'm not nervous. I'm just...um...tired. Yeah, I'm really tired." Camille yawned and stretched her arms over her head for effect.

Moose smirked; crap, he was on to her.

"You're a bad liar, C. Always have been." Camille averted her eyes; his gaze always made her tell the truth. She couldn't lie to him. It was impossible. But she really didn't want him knowing about all these insecurities.

"Camille," his joking tone changed to stern, "what's going on?"

Moose had managed to position himself as close to her as the armrest comfortably allowed, and she was beginning to get even more nervous. He was staring at her face, knowing that if he did long enough, she would crack.

"Fine!" She bursted, making everyone on the train stop what they were doing and look at her.

"Sorry," she whispered and smiled shyly, her cheeks turning a bright pink.

"Alright, Moose. I'll tell you. But you're not going to understand." He brought his hand to his chest and fake hurt. Camille ignored this gesture and went on.

"This is our first holiday as a couple. Doesn't that make you at all nervous? I've known you're family, like, my whole life. They like me as your best friend, but what if they don't like me as your girlfriend?"

He scrunched his eyebrows and shook his head, going to interrupt her, but Camille went on.

"And on top of all that, we're going to get 9,000 questions. It's like I'm being introduced to your family all over again, and it scares the crap out of me."

She looked at the floor, breathing heavily.

"Camille, you're going to hyperventilate again." Moose was referring back to the time she got so nervous while talking to the advisor of NYU at her interview that she nearly had a panic attack.

Moose grabbed hold of her hand, rubbing circles on the back with his thumb until she had calmed down.

"Cam," she finally had the courage to look up at him, and she was pleased to see he was smiling.

"You have nothing to worry about. They love you. Seriously, my uncles always asked me when I was going to ask you out, and my aunts would tell me not to let you get away. They're going to be so thrilled they probably won't leave us alone for the rest of the night."

The train came to a halt and a voice over the loudspeaker announced they had arrived in Maryland. The two gathered their things and made their way off the train, walking to the entrance of the station to meet his parents.

"And besides, who cares if they like you? I like you, and that's all that matters." He wound their interlaced hands around her shoulder, and her free one dropped to his waist.

"Thanks, M. I'm good. How do you do that?" He straightened his back and put a smug look on his face.

"It's all part of the charm, babe." They both laughed and she nudged her elbow into his side.

"Moose! Camille! Over here!" They both turned their heads to see Mrs. Alexander jumping up and down trying to get their attention.

They had barely made it halfway to his parents when his mother tackled him into a hug. Camille stumbled to the side laughing, walking to join his father.

"My baby! You're all grown up, Robbiekins!" She pulled back and pinched his cheeks. Moose rolled his eyes and swatted her hands away.

"Not in front of my girl, Ma. It's embarrassing." Mrs. Alexander waved her hand is dismissal.

"Please, she's seen you cry. If she's not gone by now, I don't think anything's gonna scare her away." She tried to grab the bags from him, insisting they were too heavy for him to carry. He refused her offer.

"Mom, I'm a man now. I can carry my own luggage. Don't worry about it." She raised a hand to her heart and muttered a few words of her 'little boy growing up.'

The mother and son turned and walked to where Mr. Alexander and Camille were in deep conversation about the English program at NYU.

"Camille! You're even more beautiful than when you left!" Camille turned and was instantly engulfed in Mrs. Alexander's embrace and laughed.

"Thank you, Mrs. Alexander."

"Oh please hunny, you may as well start calling me 'Mom' now."

This statement made Camille blush and Moose clear his throat. The situation had turned awkward. But in true Mrs. Alexander fashion, she ignored it and continued.

"Oh, well. We best be getting home now. I've still got cooking to do for tomorrow. Camille, sweetheart, you and your family are still coming for dinner tomorrow, right?"

Camille tried to grab her backpack and suitcase from Moose, ignoring his requests that she let him carry them.

"I'm not a damsel in distress, Moose. I can carry my own belongings." She tugged once more and was able to free her bags from his grip. Camille then refocused her attention back on the question Mrs. Alexander had asked.

"Oh, of course. We wouldn't miss it. Nora won't be with us though...she said she didn't feel right about coming since..." She trailed off slightly and Moose could sense the situation hit her.

"She's gonna spend Christmas with her family this year, Ma." Moose subtly linked his fingers with her's and started off towards the car. Mrs. Alexander nodded in response, feeling guilty that she brought up the all too recent painful memory.

The four piled into their mini van, Camille not saying a word as they drove home. They dropped her off and she thanked them, telling Moose she would text him later.

She all but ran towards her door, resisting the urge to bawl right then and there on the sidewalk. She hadn't even thought it was her first Christmas without her brother Tyler, and she felt so awful for being more concerned with her petty problems instead of thinking about her brother.

Camille made it into the house before she broke down, slamming the door behind her. She didn't even bother trying to get her luggage up the stairs and took off towards her room, ignoring the calls from her foster parents.

She flew onto her bed and crawled under the covers, nestling into the familiar mattress. How could she have been so stupid? She hadn't thought of Tyler this whole time; she felt selfish.

Memories of former Christmases with him filled her head, making her dizzy. She clutched her forehead in pain, trying to fight off the migraine forming.

She heard her window open, but she knew who it was. Moose had almost always climbed in her window instead of using the door; he thought it made him mysterious. Her parents always insisted he start coming into the house the conventional way, for soon he would get hurt. He politely refused, saying coming through the window had become routine and he 'couldn't break it now.'

The bed sank down due to him sitting on the side of her, and he tried to pull the covers from over her head.

"No," she choked out, "you really don't need to see this."

The covers were harshly pulled from over her and she instantly felt cold. She turned in the fetal position away from him, trying to avoid his questioning.

"Camille," he tried to pull her to him but she fought against him, "please, just let me in."

His words hit her hard; she'd never really shut him out of anything in her life, except for anything to do with Ty. She herself didn't know the reason; he knew him just as well as she did.

She stopped fighting and let herself be pulled against him, feeling his strong arms wrap around her waist. She stayed in her fetal position and he pulled her onto his lap, settling back against the headboard.

"Hey," he said in a soft voice, running one of his hands through her hair, "hey, Camille, look at me."

She shook her head no, burrowing against his chest. She heard him sigh but still didn't budge, closing her eyes so he couldn't look at them.

"Babe, you don't have to tell me. I know what's going on and you don't want to talk about it. But I just don't want you to be alone."

He'd always been sort-of insensitive, but when they started dating, she saw a whole other side of him. He treated her as if she was porcelain, like she was going to break at any second. He'd always ask her permission to call her some cheesy pet name, ask if he could kiss her (as of recently, he figured out he could kiss her all she wanted and she didn't mind), and he was just so gentle towards her.

He was well aware she could take care of herself, but she didn't mind at all that she had someone to protect her. She's tough; but Camille was aware that there's some things she can't handle all on her own.

They laid like that for what could've been hours; but eventually, it got too late and he really did need to get home.

They said their goodbyes and he climbed through the window; she would've told him to use the door but a. he didn't listen and b. she loved that her boyfriend came and went through her window. Maybe it did make him mysterious after all.

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**Alright, so this is part one. Part two should be coming either tomorrow or the day after, depending if it's 2 or 3 parts. But I'll have it all up before the holidays. Review please!**


	10. Never Gonna Leave You, Part 2

**Woah, guys, your reviews were awesome! Thanks so much for the kind words, they're greatly appreciated. I hope you enjoy part 2!**

**Disclaimer: I still don't own anything.**

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The next morning came way too soon for Camille, and she dreaded getting out of bed. Last nights thoughts still filled her head but she pushed them away, knowing she needed to get up and ready for the day. They still had a while until they needed to be at the Alexanders, but she needed to get up and wrap her boyfriend's gift.

She always did her Christmas shopping early; too early for most people's liking. She's always been good at giving gifts; knowing exactly what to get the person she was shopping for. Although, this year had been a little harder.

She'd never second guessed herself about buying something for Moose. She knew him so well and knew what he liked and didn't. But this year had been much more difficult. Camille felt she needed to try a little harder, since they were in a relationship and everything.

He'd always LOVED shoes. She never really understood it; he had about 1,000 pairs and still felt like he needed more. She was walking in the mall and telling herself she was not going to buy him any shoes, until she saw THEM.

They were in the window of some store she never heard of, but she was magnetically attracted to the entrance. She knew he would love them; he'd only been talking about them for months.

They were sneakers, of course, and she wasn't sure of the brand. He said it was a relatively new one and he'd looked at it online and spotted this pair he said he had to have.

She marched right up to the lady at the register, telling her she wanted those shoes and his size. The woman lazily got up and made her way to the back, mumbling about being at the good part in her book.

Camille anxiously tapped her fingers against the counter, the woman taking way too long for her liking. She came out a second later and slammed the box on the counter, moving to open the lid and show Camille.

"Don't bother," Camille said in an agitated tone, "I'll take them."

The woman rolled her eyes and punched the order in to the register, taking Camille's money and throwing the shoes in a bag.

"Happy Holidays!" The cashier put on a fake smile and cheery tone, turning back to her book as soon as Camille was halfway out of the store.

"Maybe for Christmas, you can ask Santa for a new attitude," Camille mumbled to herself. Nothing could get her down, though; she'd just found Moose's dream shoes. She couldn't wait to see his reaction, especially since he was still talking about those shoes to this day.

They had somehow gotten on the topic of Christmas lists, and Moose had instantly gone into a tangent about the sneakers.

"I went into a store to buy them the other day," he'd mentioned as they were having coffee a few weeks back.

"Really?" Camille absentmindedly played with the straw of her iced coffee, trying to answer as calmly as possible. What if he already bought them?

"Yeah, but the clerk said she had just sold the last pair in my size to some obnoxious Brunette, and they weren't going to be getting anymore in. Bummer."

She sighed in relief and then remembered the other part of his statement. She may have been a lot of things, but obnoxious is definitely not one of them. She'd have to remember to give that woman a piece of her mind.

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Camille sat on the floor of her bedroom, fighting a battle with a roll of wrapping paper. She had never been very good at it, always asking someone else to wrap gifts for her. But she was nineteen years old; eventually she was going to have to learn on her own.

A knock on her door broke her concentration and she huffed angrily, throwing the tape down and telling the person to come in. The door creaked open to reveal her Foster Mom, Lena.

"Hey Honey. Need some help?" Camille nodded, pushing the gift towards Lena and bringing her knees up to her chest.

Lena sat on the floor beside her, getting to work on wrapping the gift.

"You know, as a freshman in college I should know how to wrap a gift. I feel like that's a basic life skill." Lena laughed and cut off some ribbon, wrapping it around the freshly wrapped box.

"Honey, you were never good at this. Fantastic at everything else, though. It just means you can't be a professional gift wrapper." They both laughed, Camille scooting backwards and leaning her back on her dresser. Somehow she could tell there was a talk coming.

"So," Lena set the present aside and turned towards her daughter, "you and Moose, huh?"

Camille rolled her eyes and played with her hands, settling them down in her lap.

"Yeah, it just kind of...happened. I showed him how much I cared and he showed me how to love dance again."

Lena softly smiled and placed one of her hands on Camille's.

"You've always loved dance, Camille. Tyler and I...we always wondered why you stopped. You were happy. And I've never seen you happier than when you were dancing with Moose. Remember those ballroom dancing classes? He dragged you around the floor and you laughed the entire time."

Camille smiled at the memory and looked out her window, her eyes beginning to water. She was right; nothing made her happier than dancing.

"He'd be happy you're dancing again, Cam. He's always said you were the best." Lena grabbed her hand, patting the top of it.

Camille bit her lip, trying to hold back the tears she knew were coming.

"Oh, sweetheart." Lena gathered her daughter up in her arms, letting her cry freely.

"It's Christmas. Ty should be here. It's just not the same without him." Camille burrowed her head into Lena's shoulder, the sobs becoming more and more frequent.

"It's not going to be the same, honey. I can't tell you it will. But it's going to get better. Stop hurting. He wouldn't want us to be upset. You know that."

Camille pulled back and wiped her tears with her sleeve, reaching to her bedside table to grab a tissue.

"We've gotta be on our way in about two hours. I told Linda we'd be there early." Lena got up to leave, but then remembered something.

"Before I forget, this came in the mail for you from Nora. She says Merry Christmas and that she's sorry she couldn't make it this year." She handed Camille a small, wrapped package with a bow on it and walked out the door into the hallway, shutting it behind her.

Camille was going to wait until Christmas to open it, but her curiosity got the best of her. She sat on her bed and tore into the package, a small note falling out in the process.

She set the box aside and picked the note up, unfolded it, and began skim her eyes over the words.

_Camille,_

_I'm sorry I couldn't make it for Christmas this year. It would've been too hard. I hope you can forgive me. But, I hope you'll be able to come visit in the summer. I really do miss you. You've always been the little sister I never had, and that won't change.  
__Ty and I bought this a while back, but we wanted to wait for Christmas to give it to you. So, Merry Christmas, Cammie. I know this one's gonna be hard, but you're a strong one. You'll be okay.  
__Send everyone my love, and tell Mrs. Alexander I appreciate the invitation and I hope she understands why I just can't be there._

_Love,  
Nora _

_P.S. He was so proud of you, Cam. That you went to NYU, and that you started dancing again. We saw the video of the battle online, I don't know if I ever told you that. But he was so proud that his little sister kicked Samurai ass._

Camille sat the letter on her desk, wiping the tears that had fallen once again.

She turned her attention back to the small box, taking off the lid and taking out a small pouch.

Inside was one of the most beautiful bracelets she'd ever seen. It was silver, with 4 charms dangling from it. A 'C' for her name, a ballet slipper, a pencil (because she loved to write), and one that had the two letters 'NY' to represent New York.

Her brother knew her so well. She'd nagged for one for five years before finally giving up, and she couldn't even believe he had remembered.

Camille placed the box on her nightstand next to the note, mentally reminding herself to call Nora tomorrow and thank her. For now, she had to get ready to go.

She showered, dried and straightened her hair, and applied make-up, a rarity for her. She unzipped her suitcase, searching for the red dress she bought for the occasion.

She slipped the charm bracelet on her wrist, shaking her hand to hear the charms clanging together. She was certain she would grow to love that sound.

About an hour later she made her way down the stairs, Moose's gift in one hand and her shoes in the other. She placed her heels on her foot one by one, trying not to trip on the way down.

"Woah!" Lena gasped, "look at you! This must be more serious than I thought. You never wear dresses." Camille rolled her eyes and grabbed her coat, making her way out the door with the rest of her family.

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**Alright guys, the last part of this one should be up tomorrow. Reviews?**


	11. Never Gonna Leave You, Part 3

**Hey guys! I know I promised to have this part done by Christmas, but I was having some computer problems. All my chapters for this story got deleted off my computer, so I've been trying to restore them and finally I just rewrote this chapter. Once again, I'm so sorry guys! But thanks for sticking with me, even though my updates are all over the place.**

**School is starting up again so updates won't be very frequent, unfortunately. I'll try my hardest, but I can't promise anything. Anyway, I actually really like how this chapter came out. Just in case anyone was wondering, I was listening to Ours by Taylor Swift while writing this. It's a great song, if you haven't heard it yet, go take a listen!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything.**

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Camille stepped out of Lena's car into the cold, winter air with the carefully wrapped gift clutched to her side. Her hands were shaking, although she couldn't figure out if it was because it was cold or because of the sudden wave of anxiety that just hit her.

'_Relax, Camille,'_ she told herself, _'it's just like every other Christmas. You've known this family for years. You'll be fine.'_

"Sweetie," Lena placed her arm on Camille's elbow, bringing her out of her thoughts,"we should go inside. It's freezing out here." Camille smiled graciously at the woman she had come to regard as her mother and walked towards the front door.

She could smell the food being cooked inside and she could hear the Christmas music being played. Mrs. Alexander always made her brother play carols on the piano instead of just putting a cd in. It had come to be a tradition.

She knocked on the door, not really understand why she did so. She had always just walked right in, but this was different. Things were different.

Mrs. Alexander answered the door, her face lighting up at the sight of Camille.

"Camille, darling! You look gorgeous! My goodness, college has made you so grown up!" She had a tear in her eye and pulled Camille into a tight hug, crushing her lungs.

"Mrs. Alexander, I appreciate the compliment, but I can't breathe!" She laughed lightly and released Camille, wiping at her eyes hurriedly.

"Alright, Lena, the turkey is dry and I was wondering if you had any ideas on how to fix it? And Camille, please go force my son out of his room. I asked him to come down a half hour ago, but you know he doesn't listen to me."

She grabbed a hanger and hung up her coat, rolling her eyes at Mrs. Alexander's comment.

"He doesn't listen to me either, Mrs. A. But I'll try. Let me put this under the tree first." Camille gestured to the gift still in her hands and made her way to the living room.

She spotted it almost instantly, not that you could miss it. Christmas was a huge thing in the Alexander house, and the tree was always massive. She knelt down in front, placing the gift next to a small box.

She glanced up quickly and spotted two ornaments: one said "Camille, 1999" and the other said "Robert, 1999." Camille smiled at the memory, they had made them for the tree one year in art class and were so proud of them. Really, they were just puzzle pieces glued together with their name and the year in paint pen, but she loved them anyway.

Camille got up and brushed her dress out to straighten the wrinkles she was sure were there from sitting on the floor and proceeded to the staircase that led to the second floor. As she reached the top step, she heard one of the many songs on Moose's dance mixes coming from inside the closed door.

Without thinking, she swung the door open, and stared at the sight in front of her. Moose had somehow managed to clear the furniture to one side of the room and was attempting some move she had never seen before in his suit.

She put one hand on her hip and walked towards the stereo.

"Hey dancing machine," she yelled over the music before turning it off, "you plan on joining the party before the year ends?"

He whipped around to see who the voice belonged to and froze. His eyed widened and he just stared at her. Camille smirked, she was hoping this outfit would get that reaction from him. It's not every day she voluntarily wears a dress.

"Camille…hi…uh…wow…" he managed to spit out in one breath.

"I'm glad you can form a sentence, Moose." He rolled his eyes at her comment and walked towards her, wrapping his arms around her waist. She responded by linking her arms around his neck and kissing him on the cheek.

"You smell good." Moose buried his face in her neck, earning a girlish giggle from Camille.

"Camille Gage, did you just giggle?" She slapped his arm and pulled out of his embrace, stepping towards his mirror.

"Don't get too used to it," she said, fixing her hair, "this is probably the most girly you'll see me for, like, ever."

Moose wrapped his arms around his girlfriend from behind.

"Good," he looked in the mirror at her, "I definitely like this Camille, but I love my Camille. My adorable, slightly geeky girlfriend." He kissed her shoulder and turned back to his bed, grabbing his tie.

"I am most definitely not a geek, my friend," she took the tie from his hands and started to put it around his neck, "and if I am, at least I'm not a cornball like you."

He mocked offense and she grabbed his hand, pulling him towards the stairs.

"Wait," he tugged her hand and pulled her back to him, "this is probably the last time for the entire night I'll have the chance to do this, as I don't think we want to be all over each other in front of my family."

"What…" Camille began but was cut off when Moose placed his lips on her's. She melted into the kiss; no matter how many times he did that, she still saw fireworks.

"There," he pulled back and straightened his tie, "ready!"

* * *

The party was rather successful, and the couple only got a few questions and looks from the rest of the family. Most of them just said 'It's about time!' or made comments on how cute they were. That was to be expected: it seemed that the entire family was rooting for them to be a couple from the start.

Moose stayed close to Camille's side for most of the night, an arm slung around her waist. Dinner conversation seemed to be focused on them, but they didn't even notice. They were too focused on holding each other's hands under the table.

Both sets of parents looked lovingly at their child and their significant other, and Lena and Mrs. Alexander talked nonstop about the couple.

"I've known it from the start," Lena gushed as they all sat in the living room, "these two are just meant for each other. Look at them!" The two blushed and looked away, smiles on their faces.

They were on the couch, Camille cuddled up to Moose's side. They hadn't really spoke to each other, they were waiting for the attention to be diverted off of them.

Mr. Alexander seemed to sense this and proceeded to tell everyone how Moose has become a double major, leaving the two to talk.

"Well, seems like we were a hit tonight," Camille said, laying her head on Moose's shoulder, "this was definitely not what I expected."

Moose shook his head, squeezing her hand. "I told you, they love you. Everyone does."

"So Camille," Aunt Mary spoke up from the corner, "where is your brother? He and his wife are always around for Christmas."

The room went silent and Moose felt Camille instantly stiffen. He was hoping no one would bring this up.

"Uh, Aunt Mary," he cleared his throat, "Ty died a few months ago. Nora decided to spend Christmas with her family this year." Aunt Mary's face instantly fell and she regretted saying anything.

"Oh, Camille," she said sympathetically, "I'm so sorry. I didn't know."

Camille plastered a fake smile on her face and focused her eyes on the floor.

"It's okay," she looked at Lena to see that she was crying, "it's hard. We miss him. But we know he'd want us to be happy at this time of year. Nora sends her love to everyone, by the way."

Moose's arm tightened around her and she smiled up at him, silently thanking him for explaining so she didn't have to.

Soon enough, 11:30 came. Everyone had left except for the Alexanders and Camille's family. The adults were in the kitchen cleaning and Camille and Moose had moved to the floor by the fireplace.

"Merry Christmas, Chameleon," Moose said, pulling his girlfriend to him, "this is our first Christmas together, and I realize it could be like our fifth if I hadn't been so oblivious." Camille patted him on the knee.

"Moose, you have to stop blaming yourself. When things are meant to happen, they happen. And our relationship was meant to happen when it did. We can't keep regretting what we didn't have in the past. We just have to look forward to what we have for the future."

Moose suddenly turned her to face him.

"I love you, Cam. You know that, right?" Camille rolled her eyes at him.

"Of course I know that. You only tell me every day." Moose's face grew serious.

"No, I mean like, I love you. Like love, love. Like you're the one kind of love. I never had this with Sophie. Ever. I thought you'd want to know that. It's always been you, Cam."

Camille had never felt so loved in her life. How did she doubt his feelings for her a few months ago?

"How did I get so lucky? I love you too, Moose. So much. I always have." Moose pulled her tighter against his chest, kissing the side of her forehead.

Camille glanced at the clock over the fireplace.

"Oh! It's Christmas!" She shot up, hurrying towards the tree. She grabbed the box and sat down beside her boyfriend again.

"Merry Christmas," she said shyly and pushed the box into his hands.

"Cam, you didn't have to," he said, but he ripped into the box anyway.

"NO WAY! No freaking way! Dude, how did you find these?" He threw his current shoes off and put the new ones on his feet.

"I saw them in a store when I was at the mall one day. You know the "obnoxious brunette" the clerk you talked to was talking about? Well, that was me." Moose laughed and stood up, pulling her with him.

"You're the best girlfriend ever." He did a few moves in his new sneakers and kissed her, then took her by the hand and made her sit in the chair next to the tree.

He searched under the tree for what he was looking for and turned back when he found it, placing a small box in her hands. He took a seat on the arm of the chair and fell back, squeezing himself on to the chair beside her.

"Before you open it, I have to say I got help. I called Nora since you know I'm an awful gift shopper, and she gave me some ideas."

The paper Camille tore open revealed a square, blue box with a lid. She stared at it in wonder and looked back at her boyfriend. He smiled at her encouragingly.

"Well, open it!" He mocked the words she had said to him at the train station a few months back.

She took the lid off the box, placed it on Moose's lap, and took out a blue pouch. She pulled turned the pouch over in her hand and out fell a heart on a delicate chain.

She didn't even realize she was crying until she looked down at her trembling hands fumbling with the clasp.

"Wait," Moose said, taking the necklace out of her hands, "read the back."

She turned the heart over and read the engraved message in cursive writing.

'_I'll Catch You'_

It took all of Camille's strength to not break down right then and there. That one phrase, those three little words meant everything to her. He kept his promise and caught her.

Moose took the necklace from her hands and clasped it around her neck, drawing her into a hug afterwards.

"Moose, it's absolutely perfect. But you didn't have to go through all that trouble…" He cut her off.

"You're worth it."

She smiled up at him and crawled onto his lap, burying her face in his chest. They sat in silence for a while, enjoying each other's company.

"Hey Moose?"

"Yeah?"

"Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, Chameleon."

* * *

**Okay, okay I know, total fluff, but the holidays make me all sappy, and we all know I love love! Anyways, I hope you guys like it, and I would appreciate reviews!**


	12. Author's Note

**A/N: Hey guys! I know you were expecting a new chapter, but I've decided to end this one with that last chapter. I'm fresh out of ideas for the story, but I hope to start a new Camille/Moose one soon. I appreciate all the reviews, favorites, story/author alerts, everything. You guys have been amazing, don't hate me!**

**cinderstellabella**


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